Connolly placed on Waivers

[Kin]

And that's what makes it odd. He can produce in the NHL, so seeing him in the AHL will be strange although not unheard of, and someone picking him up on waivers seems like a longshot.

I think, though, the problem with Connolly is that he's sort of in a no-man's zone where while he can contribute somewhat, he can't really contribute enough to justify either his salary or the kind of minutes that he'd need to be productive. Honestly, it's tough for me to imagine a team that wouldn't have someone, a young player probably, that they wouldn't want in a 3rd line spot over him.

 

[Bonsixx]

And that's what makes it odd. He can produce in the NHL, so seeing him in the AHL will be strange although not unheard of, and someone picking him up on waivers seems like a longshot.

I think, though, the problem with Connolly is that he's sort of in a no-man's zone where while he can contribute somewhat, he can't really contribute enough to justify either his salary or the kind of minutes that he'd need to be productive. Honestly, it's tough for me to imagine a team that wouldn't have someone, a young player probably, that they wouldn't want in a 3rd line spot over him.

The crazy thing is, this guy scored 65 points a couple of years ago and I don't think anyone can question his skill with the puck. His health and his apparent overall desire to excel, however, are another story...

 

[cw]

One thing I don't understand is this:

According to a new agreement between the NHLPA and the NHL, teams can use one of their two compliance buyouts on a player with at least a $3 million in average salary this season and incur a full cap hit, but suffer no cap hit next season or beyond. FROM TSN

So the team still has the cap penalty, they have to pay him, but he's not playing? If they buy him out, it's just so he doesn't play for the team? If there was more than one year left on his contract I'd understand, but with one year left, it makes less sense. Unless they want him to play for the Marlies, or hope someone picks him up on waivers, but the TSN article suggests a buyout.

It makes no sense to me either.

I strongly suspect, like Lombardi, Connolly was offered around the league at a contract discount (for up to 1/2 price) trying to get a pick in return and they had no takers.

From that, it looks like he'll replace Aucoin on the Marlies because most teams would part with a 4th-5th rounder before they'd part with up to $2.375 mil (the difference of half his contract as opposed to the full $4.75 mil contract if he was picked up on waivers).

IlYoud have to think a team would be better off with him at $2.5mil in their lineup. He's not that bad a player.

I think he can still play in the league as well - as I do Lombardi. But they're trying to be tougher to play against. Kadri is another kind of soft player. So they became the weakest links in terms of the softies on the roster.

I also wonder if they're clearing the way to make another move.

And that's what makes it odd. He can produce in the NHL, so seeing him in the AHL will be strange although not unheard of, and someone picking him up on waivers seems like a longshot. I guess getting tougher makes sense, and if he is playing in the AHL, he's depth, but aren't the re-entry waivers terrible for the team that loses the player?

Re-entry waivers is gone under this new CBA. So he's great for depth given we don't need the cap space.

You never know. It might light a fire in him.

Makes much more sense if the re-entry waivers are gone. And it may be good to replace some of the talent the Marlies may be losing.

They've got to have depth for injuries and I'd gladly take Connolly over Aucoin because he's more versatile.

 

[Kin]

The crazy thing is, this guy scored 65 points a couple of years ago and I don't think anyone can question his skill with the puck. His health and his apparent overall desire to excel, however, are another story...

Except 65 points, in the right sort of conditions, doesn't really mean much. The year before Connolly scored 65, Jason Blake scored 63 and Ponikarovsky scored 61. Get enough PP time, play with the right people in the right system and 55-60 points can be put up by just about anyone.

 

[Beowulf]

The crazy thing is, this guy scored 65 points a couple of years ago and I don't think anyone can question his skill with the puck. His health and his apparent overall desire to excel, however, are another story...

Except 65 points, in the right sort of conditions, doesn't really mean much. The year before Connolly scored 65, Jason Blake scored 63 and Ponikarovsky scored 61. Get enough PP time, play with the right people in the right system and 55-60 points can be put up by just about anyone.

I don't think there is (or ever will be perhaps) a better example of this than Jason Allison's 60 points in 05-06.

 

[Bullfrog]

I don't your "conditions" apply to Connolly's career though, Nik. He's a proven scorer. His 65 points came in only 73 games, with his two seasons before at similar pace.

0.8 ppg and higher is not attainable by just about everyone. It's attainable by very few.

 

[Bullfrog]

I don't think there is (or ever will be perhaps) a better example of this than Jason Allison's 60 points in 05-06.

I honestly can't think of a worse example. It's entirely consistent with his scoring rate throughout most of his career. Being able to do so after a few years off is a testament to his offensive talent, not to some fortunate set of circumstances.

 

[PG]

The crazy thing is, this guy scored 65 points a couple of years ago and I don't think anyone can question his skill with the puck. His health and his apparent overall desire to excel, however, are another story...

Except 65 points, in the right sort of conditions, doesn't really mean much. The year before Connolly scored 65, Jason Blake scored 63 and Ponikarovsky scored 61. Get enough PP time, play with the right people in the right system and 55-60 points can be put up by just about anyone.

I don't think there is (or ever will be perhaps) a better example of this than Jason Allison's 60 points in 05-06.

I'll raise you Matt Stajan's 08-09 season. 55 points for a guy I will maintain is one of the worst forwards in the entire league.

 

[Bullfrog]

Now that's a good example!  8)

 

[GhostofPotvin29]

I don't your "conditions" apply to Connolly's career though, Nik. He's a proven scorer. His 65 points came in only 73 games, with his two seasons before at similar pace.

0.8 ppg and higher is not attainable by just about everyone. It's attainable by very few.

As Mirtle's article yesterday said:

In the first five seasons after the last lockout, Connolly actually had 0.89 points per game for the Sabres, which puts him 38th and in impressive company out of players that played at least 40 games a season over that stretch.

 

[Deebo]

The crazy thing is, this guy scored 65 points a couple of years ago and I don't think anyone can question his skill with the puck. His health and his apparent overall desire to excel, however, are another story...

Except 65 points, in the right sort of conditions, doesn't really mean much. The year before Connolly scored 65, Jason Blake scored 63 and Ponikarovsky scored 61. Get enough PP time, play with the right people in the right system and 55-60 points can be put up by just about anyone.

I don't think there is (or ever will be perhaps) a better example of this than Jason Allison's 60 points in 05-06.

I'll raise you Matt Stajan's 08-09 season. 55 points for a guy I will maintain is one of the worst forwards in the entire league.

Not points but I'd like to throw Raycroft's 37 wins into the discussion.

 

[Kin]

I don't your "conditions" apply to Connolly's career though, Nik. He's a proven scorer. His 65 points came in only 73 games, with his two seasons before at similar pace.

0.8 ppg and higher is not attainable by just about everyone. It's attainable by very few.

The thing is, I didn't watch those Sabres teams. I don't know off hand who he played with or how he was used. It looks, at a glance based on NHL.com's ice time stats, that he probably was on the #1 PP unit with Vanek and Pominville.

So it doesn't strike me as all that unlikely that the conditions I'm talking about would apply. Jason Blake does have a similar 4 year stretch or so where he did put up the numbers of a very good goal scorer. Matt Stajan, when he was traded from the Leafs, was putting up points at a roughly similar(.75 ppg) pace.

 

[cw]

The crazy thing is, this guy scored 65 points a couple of years ago and I don't think anyone can question his skill with the puck. His health and his apparent overall desire to excel, however, are another story...

Except 65 points, in the right sort of conditions, doesn't really mean much. The year before Connolly scored 65, Jason Blake scored 63 and Ponikarovsky scored 61. Get enough PP time, play with the right people in the right system and 55-60 points can be put up by just about anyone.

I don't think there is (or ever will be perhaps) a better example of this than Jason Allison's 60 points in 05-06.

I'll raise you Matt Stajan's 08-09 season. 55 points for a guy I will maintain is one of the worst forwards in the entire league.

Poor Bambi

 

[Fanatic]

Simmons is saying that Connolly will not be bought out. He will go to Marlies to fill void of Aucoin/Kadri.

 

[Beowulf]

Fair enough, I guess it doesn't really fit that criteria but I suppose I meant Allison's 60 pts if looked at on its own would highly overrate his actual performance or value to the team more than anyone else I can think of; 39 of those points came on the PP and he was one of the worst on the team with a -18 (only O'Neill and Richardson worse).

Stajan might have gotten those points because of who he was playing with but he brought far more to the table than slow as molasses Allison. 

 

[cw]

Simmons is saying that Connolly will not be bought out. He will go to Marlies to fill void of Aucoin/Kadri.

Since he has no contract for next season, I don't understand why anyone is talking buyout with Connolly ... as Burke enjoys his time off from Simmons.

 

[Zee]

Simmons is saying that Connolly will not be bought out. He will go to Marlies to fill void of Aucoin/Kadri.

Since he has no contract for next season, I don't understand why anyone is talking buyout with Connolly ... as Burke enjoys his time off from Simmons.

Yeah, buyouts should be used for those stupid long term contracts you can't get out of, not Connolly who has a contract expiring this season.

 

[cw]

Simmons is saying that Connolly will not be bought out. He will go to Marlies to fill void of Aucoin/Kadri.

Since he has no contract for next season, I don't understand why anyone is talking buyout with Connolly ... as Burke enjoys his time off from Simmons.

Yeah, buyouts should be used for those stupid long term contracts you can't get out of, not Connolly who has a contract expiring this season.

The only buyout available right now is the accelerated compliance buyout where a player gets full pop and cap hit this season and their contract gets to disappear from subsequent seasons starting next year in terms of cap hit.

It simply doesn't apply to Connolly's contract situation  as this is the last season of his contract. There's zero financial advantage I can see for the Leafs to attempt it. It makes no sense to me beyond opening up a space on their 50 contracts (which they'll need to replace with a depth center for the Marlies anyway so that doesn't help them much if at all).

 

[Can8899]

Buying him out doesn't make sense at all if I'm not mistaken.  Orginally, the buy outs were supposed to be permitted AFTER this season so teams who planned on buyouts were still going to have those cap hits for this season.  When the whole Gomez/Redden deal went down, teams are allowed to buyout players immediately if they meet certain criteria.  The "early" buyout's will still count against the cap at full price this season as it would have been if they were playing/sitting at home

The Leafs are stuck paying Connolly this season and having it count against the cap(whether he's bought out or not) and since his contract expires after this season, why not make him work for his money rather then paying him to either sit at home or to collect 2 paycheques.

 

[Zee]

The Leafs are stuck paying Connolly this season and having it count against the cap(whether he's bought out or not) and since his contract expires after this season, why not make him work for his money rather then paying him to either sit at home or to collect 2 paycheques.

Correct me if I'm wrong, but if nobody claims him off waivers and we send him to the Marlies, his cap hit doesn't count against the Leafs.